INK; A Milk Bone? Humph! Only Truffles Will Do

By ANDY NEWMAN

Published: February 23, 2006

THIS is what it's come to on Fifth Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn, a once-mean street now practically paved with foie gras.

A few weeks ago, the owners of the Chocolate Room, home of the $40-a-pound raspberry-peppercorn ganache, paid a visit to the bakery that had just opened across the street from the trattoria that sells pizza flaked with actual gold leaf. They complimented, with a tinge of envy, the Blodgett ovens behind the bakery counter.

Not much to envy, the bakers replied. ''They said, 'Don't buy these ovens because they're convection ovens and our cupcakes come out windblown,' '' said Naomi Josepher, one of the chocolatiers.

It is true. The bakery, Buttercup's Paw-tisserie, claims to be the first doggie bakery in the whole city that makes its treats on-premises. Take that, SoHo.

And P.S.: The cupcakes, known in this case as pupcakes, are not in the least windblown. They are in fact perfect miniatures, with a perfect white yogurt-icing paw print embossed upon a silken crust of carob.

They are also utterly delicious. To humans. As well they should be, considering the all-natural human-grade ingredients.

''The stuff we use here is healthier than what we eat,'' Betty Wong said from behind the counter, as her business partner and brother-in-law, Scott Wong, prepared a tray of wheat-free liver-and-herb biscotti for the oven.

On Saturday, Buttercup herself, an American cocker spaniel in a form-hugging pink crocheted Japanese dress, held court behind the counter, poking her nose between the display case that holds the coconut-coated carob-crunch truffles (a steal at $1.50 apiece) and the display case that holds the liver-cheese brownies (75 cents each) and the salmon crackers with seaweed and anchovy paste ($6.95 for a barker's dozen).

A small fringe-eared mutt named Kipper entered the store, trailing his mistress, Elizabeth Zenteno, 6, and Elizabeth's mom, Amanda.

Ms. Zenteno, 30, the operations manager of the Brooklyn Youth Choir, was a fan of the humble fish market that preceded the bakery, but all things must pass. ''I thought it was very high end when we first came by,'' she said. ''Regardless of that, she likes to get stuff for her dog.''

The pupcakes ($1.50 each) were for Kipper and his brother to share at Elizabeth's father's birthday party. Dad rated only a supermarket cake.

The pawtisserie is threatening to become the hub of a whole high-end doggie district. On Sunday, Annie Daniel, a fledgling fashion designer who dropped by with Pita, a Yorkshire terrier in a faux-shearling jacket, said she would soon begin producing puppy couture at her husband's clothing factory a bone's throw away on Third Avenue.

The line will be called Ruff Love. ''If I had to compare it to anything, it would be Delia's for teens, Pacific Sunwear for boys,'' said Ms. Daniel, 20.

Her husband, Elliot Daniel, is hoping that Pita's fondness for lamb-mint-and-spinach bowwows will pay professional dividends.

''When we saw this place,'' he said, ''we were like, 'Perfect, our first customer.' ''

Photo: Buttercup greets customers at the dog treat bakery named after her in Park Slope, Brooklyn. (Photo by Andrea Mohin/The New York Times)